


Grand Phoenix of Fairy Tail: Out of the Ashes

by Tenryu_no_Hoko



Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: Dai Matou Enbu | Grand Magic Games Arc, Gen, Post-Tenroujima Arc, Pre-Dai Matou Enbu | Grand Magic Games Arc, Rewrite
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-07
Updated: 2019-10-23
Packaged: 2020-06-24 03:52:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,383
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19715677
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tenryu_no_Hoko/pseuds/Tenryu_no_Hoko
Summary: Change is a constant, ever going process. It never stop, not even for a second. No matter how much you wish for it, nothing can return to the way it was. After making a potentially fatal deal with a Phoenix known as Pyris, Romeo's life will be thrown into a hell storm of change. With Fairy Tail on the brink of collapse, can Romeo pull himself and everyone he loves out of the ashes?(Rewrite of Grand Phoenix of Fairy Tail)





	1. Into the Inferno

Two years.

You would think so much would change in two years, yet when you look back on it, how much has really changed? Is life really any different now than it was two years ago? Are you any different than you were two years ago? Or are you still the same? Still stuck in the same place, just in a different time?

Not that there's anything wrong with it, necessarily. Sometimes the place you were in two years ago was a pretty good place; a place you would like to stay in, or perhaps one you'd like to return to. Maybe it was the best place in the world.

For a young boy named Romeo Conbolt, two years ago was definitely the _best_ place in the world, and one year and three-hundred-sixty-four days ago was the _worst_ place in the world.

Now take a wild fucking guess as to which one he was stuck in.

Everything had changed for him in the last two years. Then nothing changed at all.

Fairy Tail fell from grace, and now it's still falling. Many of its members were gone, and more continue to leave, albeit in less permanent ways. His father drank, now he just drinks more. His best friend stopped talking to him, now they don't speak at all.

If you were to look at a picture of the guild on the day they found out Tenrou disappeared, then at a picture of them today, the only differences you'd find would be the location and the number of people. The faces, however, remained the same.

Yes, everything has changed, and now nothing changes at all.

Even the slightest glimmers of hope always seem to fizzle out. Just once, he wished there could be something, _anything_ , that could help them.

But alas, it would not be that easy. Though change came usually when one least expected it, it never came on its own. If he wanted something to be done about Fairy Tail's situation, he'd have to do it himself. He'd have to try to be the best Fairy Tail mage he could be.

However, how can he do that when the guild only ever gets a bunch of _POINTLESS_ missions!?

"Why are we even here?" asked a disgruntled Romeo. At the moment, the ten-year-old was hanging upside-down from a tree branch. His bright orange scarf, affected by the forces of gravity, fell in front of his face, blocking his vision before he moved it out of the way.

The green haired woman he was speaking to, Bisca, sighed. "We were hired to guard this doorway, Romeo. You know this. _You_ picked the mission," she reminded him, then went back to reloading one of her various rifles.

Said door they were sent to guard was honestly quite impressive, though Romeo would not admit this. It was a pair of large, grey stone doors, built into the side of a mountain. Several images of flaming birds were carved into it, and in the center was an azure orb.

Supposedly it lead into a massive cavern, filled with the old ruins of a temple where an ancient form of fire magic was practiced. This was the main reason Romeo wanted to take the mission in the first place, but the man who gave them this mission, the mayor of the nearby town, forbid them from entering.

Which meant that he couldn't go off and study the ancient, probably kickass fire magic resting a literal five feet from him. But oh well, what can you do? Sometimes it's not about the reward, it's about helping the people. They were hired to guard this doorway, and that's what they're gonna do.

However...

"Yeah but guard it from _what!?_ We've been here for _days_ and haven't seen _shit!_ " Romeo threw his hands up—er, _down_ —in the air, causing his legs to lose their grip on the branch. Luckily he'd already stuck his arms out, causing him to injure his left wrist rather than his head .

Bisca, and her black-haired husband, Alzack, were worried for a moment, but after seeing the boy stand back up and brushed himself off, they knew he'd be fine. "I know this is a bit… dull," spoke the female gunslinger, "but the pay is good and we need the money. Please just hold on for a little longer?"

"I don't want to ' _hold on for a little longer_ '!" Once again, his hands were up in the air, moving animatedly as he spoke. "This is pointless! This whole _thing_ is pointless!" He said as he walked up to the stone doorway. His face reflected in the blue orb.

"Romeo!" Alzack called, "The mayor told us not to go through that door!"

Romeo groaned. "Well, too bad for him! The whole reason I'm here is behind this door, and I'll be _damned_ if I don't get to see it!" He attempted to push on it, but it refused to budge. He kept pushing, but still it wouldn't move. Orange magic circles appeared at his elbows, both blasting out flames, but even their added boost didn't make moving the two stone doors andy easier.

"Stop it, young man!"

Romeo boosted the power of his flame-elbows. He swore he saw the orb glow for a second.

" _Romeo Mariya_ **[1]** _Conbolt!"_

' _Ugh, full name.'_ Romeo groaned, dispersing his flames. "Fine." He stepped away from the door, and began walking to his tent. "But I'm going to sleep. Wake me if something ever happens."

The gun mage couple waited until the boy was in his tent before they started talking again.

"I'm worried about that boy," Bisca voiced her concern.

Alzack nodded. "It can't be easy for him. It's not easy for any of us. We lost a lot more than just Tenrou that day." He shifted his body around, suddenly feeling uncomfortable.

The vertette lowered her head. "I suppose so... but still…" She looked up at her husband, "... isn't there something we can do?"

From inside his tent, Romeo heard the whole conversation. He wrapped his pillow around his ears so he could _stop_ hearing it. ' _You want to know what you can do?'_ he thought, shoving his eyelids together in an effort to go to sleep. ' _SHUT UP ABOUT TENROU!'_

* * *

Night had fallen on the trio. Alzack took the first shift standing guard, while his wife went back to their tent to sleep. He hoped she'd wake up soon to take her shift, though. He had to agree with Romeo, there was nothing going on. It was causing him to nod off.

He was so tired that he failed to notice the campfire he'd set up earlier change color. Instead of a bright orange, it was now a light yellow color. It smelled like lavender and chamomile.

His head became heavy, and his body relaxed. A whisper of, "Three...two...one…" floated through the air, ending with a _thud_ that was a bit heavier than the nearby boy would have liked.

But he couldn't focus on that now. Romeo had a mission, and he was going to complete it. If he could just learn _something_ , _anything_ , that could help him improve as a mage, that could help him save Fairy Tail, then it'll be worth it. He doesn't care if he gets caught, he doesn't care if he doesn't get any reward money, and he'll accept his grounding with a smile on his face, as long as he can just find _something_ in these caverns.

Slowly, he parted the flaps on his tent and popped his head out. Alzack was out cold, and Bisca was still in her tent. The door was only ten feet away, but it looked more like ten miles to Romeo. He crept out of his tent, purple fire engulfing his feet and dulling the sound of his steps. Keeping a careful eye on the black-haired mage, he made his way to the door.

Left foot, right foot, left foot, right foot, left foot—

_Crack!_

The boy's eyes shot downwards to the two branched by his feet, that were most likely one until a few seconds ago. He then shifted his gaze to a hopefully sleeping mage...

" _Zzz...zzz…"_

...Who was thankfully still asleep.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Romeo continued on to his goal.

He stopped about a foot away from it. It was much less impressive at night, which was disappointing. He thought things were supposed to get cooler at night. It's what his dad said, anyway. That things are always more "fun" at night.

' _Now how do I-'_ Romeo's thoughts abruptly stopped at the sight of the azure orb in the center of the door. He remembered how earlier it lit up when he used his fire magic. He wondered…

A small, orange fire burst to life in his right hand, and he carefully brought it to the orb. Just as it had before, the sphere glowed a dull blue glow. The outlines of the doors' carvings lit up as well, visible only because it was at night.

' _Alright, that seems to be doing something…'_ he pondered, ' _Can't exactly make the flame bigger, one of them will notice. Maybe if I make the flames hotter?'_ He changed the flame in his hand from its orange color to a crimson red, which resulted in the space around him drastically growing in temperature. Sweat started to form on his body.

It _seemed_ to be working. The orb was glowing much brighter, and the outline of the flaming birds were becoming much more visible. But nothing else was happening.

He increased the heat of his flames. His muscles cramped up, and he was no longer able to see straight. His legs were at the point of collapsing. This was the problem with these flames: they were strong, but they were _too_ strong. Between their heat and their magic consumption, it made them near impossible for him to use without fainting afterwards.

But he can't stop here. If he gets caught, Alzack and Bisca will undoubtedly send him back home, and this will all be for nothing.

He had to think. He was clearly doing _something_! He just wasn't doing _enough_ of whatever that something was. And if he kept up what he was doing, he'd undoubtedly pass out. So what else could he do?

' _C'mon, Romeo, think!'_ The boy slapped the sides of his head. ' _What would Natsu-nii do?'_

* * *

As it would turn out, punching the orb was not a good idea.

Romeo held his now-bruised right fist in his possibly-sprained left wrist. Having the latter was bad enough, but now that he had the former, he had to physically stop himself from screaming expletives into the air.

He took a deep breath, and began to think. Clearly going _through_ the door wasn't going to work. But maybe, there was another way in…? Fire is hard to control, after all. Some late night practice goes wrong, and suddenly there's a hole in the mountain?

Yeah, that sounded pretty believable.

With that idea in mind, he began his walk away from the campsite, completely unaware that someone else was walking towards it.

* * *

Once he was far enough from camp, he observed his surroundings. The mountainside was an earthy brown color, but parts of it had given way to reveal the same stone grey that the doors to the temple had. As for the sky, it was perfect. There wasn't a cloud in sight; there was only the full moon and the hundreds of thousands of stars above him.

This just might work.

He lifted his slightly-less-damaged left hand into the air and summoned an indigo magic circle. To the untrained eye, it would look like nothing was happening, but that couldn't be further from the truth. No, the feel of his heart racing, the air buzzing, and the sheer _power_ flowing through his arm told Romeo that something was _definitely_ happening.

Slowly, he lowered his left hand and aimed it towards the mountainside.

This was the tricky part for him; taking all of the cosmic power he'd absorbed and expelling it in the form of fire. Now, to say that Romeo was good with this type of _**Flare Magic**_ would be a bit of an exaggeration. Actually, it would be an outright lie, since he's never actually _used_ it before. His teacher, Totomaru, didn't even want him _knowing_ this particular _**Flare**_ yet. But Romeo had been curious, and as they say, curiosity kills the cat.

But satisfaction brings it back.

And if he pulls this off, it will definitely be satisfying.

He released the energy. An indigo light _ripped_ through the space between him and the mountain. The air itself was incinerated, screaming out in a sonic boom before finally being converted to ash.

Romeo himself was sent flying so far that, had it not been for a conveniently placed tree, he would have flown right off the mountain.

"That was… a bit more than I was expecting…" the boy gasped, struggling to get up. His left hand was now completely fucked, and quite possibly not even there anymore, since he could no longer feel the appendage. His back, too, hadn't been spared any mercy, and was most likely bleeding and covered in splinters.

However, a single glance upward told him it had been worth it. Where there once stood a wall of rock, there was now an inviting entrance into a temple where he'd hopefully learn a super-awesome ancient form of fire magic.

He grabbed a fallen branch with his right hand, used it to prop himself up like a cane, and ignited a small flame in his thankfully-still-there left hand for light. Slowly, he trudged into the temple.

* * *

Meanwhile, back at the campsite, there was someone else interested in the secrets that lay dormant within the temple's walls. Not because she wished to learn anything in particular, she already knew plenty. No, she was here for a much _grander_ purpose.

It pleased the woman to know that the people guarding the entrance were asleep. Even after that strange boom in the distance, what she assumed was just mortals playing with their explosives again, they remained out cold.

She smiled at the prospect of not having to kill anyone today.

Lazily, she lifted her palm to the azure orb in the center of the doors, and an equally azure flame sprung to life in her hand. The carvings on the door lit up like Christmas lights.

The doors that had not been opened in decades began to part.

* * *

The temple was much larger than he'd initially expected. It was built much more like a maze than a place of worship; there were twists and turns everywhere, traps and puzzles galore, and a whole bunch of different rooms to explore. It was like something out of a video game…

Thankfully just about every wall and door was broken down and decayed, and none of the traps work anymore. The only issue with the place was the lack of lighting, but since Romeo is a fire mage, it wasn't really much of a problem.

No, the real problem was the lack of ancient fire magics this place was supposed to have. He'd been through a few rooms so far, but he hadn't found a thing! And there were no signs saying, "Hey, ancient magic's this way, idiot," so he was S.O.L. there.

" **Well, did you expect there to be a sign?"**

"Kinda, yeah," Romeo responded. He took a few steps forward, then stopped. His eyes widened. "Uhh…" He looked around the room. "...hello…?"

…

…

…

" **Hello."**

" _AHH!"_ He tried to run backwards, but ended up tripping on a rock and falling.

" **If you're gonna scream, then don't ask me to respond!"** yelled the voice, roaring like a flame that had burned since the dawn of time and will continue to burn until the end of it.

"Wh-who are you?"

**"To you, I am friend. Which you'll need if you want to get out of here _alive_." **The boy's stunned silence told the voice that he needed to explain further. " **There's someone else in this temple, someone other than me, and if you don't find me, neither of us will live to see tomorrow."**

Romeo's heart pounded. Who ever this voice was, they didn't sound like they were lying. He didn't want to die. He'd seen death, and it didn't look appealing.

The sound of footsteps echoing through the caverns pulled him from his daze.

" **Get up and go where I tell you** ," demanded the voice, **"And don't worry, _she_ won't be able to hear us."**

Romeo did as he was told.

" **Continue down this hallway until you come upon the second door to the left. Go through that door, then take your...**

Following the voices instructions, Romeo found himself wandering further and further into the labyrinth. He wondered how much further in he'd have to go, and why whoever was leading him was so far in in the first place. His musings were cut short, however, when the voice screamed;

" _ **HIDE!**_ " An absolute terror permeated the voice as it spoke this single word.

Rome turned the corner. Quickly, he extinguished the flames he was using as a light source, and hid behind the remains of an old stone wall. The sound of footsteps drew closer.

"Now where oh where did that old codger hide you," drawled a female voice.

Romeo took a peek over the stone wall, but it was impossible for him to tell what the woman looked like in the dark. All he could tell was that she was wearing heels and had glowing red eyes.

" **You use colored flames, correct?"** asked the voice, " **Do you have any blue ones?"**

"Y-"

" **Don't speak! If you can, I want you to throw some of those flames down the corridor to the right, then you sneak up the corridor to the left. Can you do that?"**

Romeo nodded, though wasn't sure if it actually got through to the disembodied voice. He activated his dark blue flames, creating a slight chill in the air, and threw them through a crack in the wall into the nearby corridor.

"Hm?" the woman turned her head to where she thought she'd heard a noise. She grinned maliciously when she saw the faint blue glow coming from that area. "Ah, there you are."

Knowing she'd taken the bait, Romeo manipulated the blue flame to go down the hallway, causing her to follow it. Once he could no longer hear her footsteps, he let go of his control of the flame and breathed a sigh of relief.

Quickly, the boy got back up and went where the voice told him to go. He didn't know how long he'd have until the woman caught up with him, but he didn't want to wait and find out.

Soon enough he ended up in what he assumed to be the center of the temple.

It was a wide open room with very few decorations. The back wall had a rusted old katana on one side, and a beat up blue cloth (that might've been clothing at one point) on the other. Between those two objects was a faded tapestry, depicting blue, light blue, grey, white, and violet birds facing off against a large black and red bird. In the center of the room was a glowing blue crystal egg.

But there were no people.

Romeo turned his head, looking around the room. "Hello?" he called, "Mysterious Voice-san, where are you?"

" **Right here,"** it answered. " **And my name is Pyris."**

"Right where, uh, Pyris?"

" **Here,"** the voice spoke, drawing Romeo's attention to the center of the room. " **I wish we had time for formalities, but right now that's a luxury we can't afford. I'll just cut to the case: you came here looking for a special type of fire magic, right?"**

"Yeah," said the boy, astonished, "How did you know?"

" **Most people come here for that, though few I actually find worthy of wielding it."**

The boy shifted around. "Oh." He paused. "Do you… do you think I'm… worthy?"

" **Despite the new hole in my temple-"** Romeo winced as he heard this. " **-yes, yes I do. You seek to use my power for the good of others, not just yourself. Qualities like that are definitely of worth."** The crystal egg began to glow brighter, the energy within it leaking out into the open air.

" **Romeo, what I wish to bestow upon you is the magic of my people, of beings that are the embodiments of the elements themselves!"** Pyris' voice boomed, causing the air around them to become thinner, " **With this power, you will have a mastery over fire unlike any the world has seen for milenia! Will you, Romeo Conbolt, mage of Fairy Tail, accept the power of the Grand Fire Phoenix?"**

Romeo didn't even hesitate.

"Absolutely."

A grin could be heard in the Phoenix's voice as he said, " **Very well."**

The egg in the center of the room began to levitate. It's energy spilled forth in the form of blue flames, burning away its container and transforming itself into an ever growing inferno. It pulled everything in the room towards it, sucking in the sword, cloth, and tapestry that hung upon the wall, and preparing to suck in Romeo as well.

Romeo, meanwhile, seemed incapable of moving his body of his own accord, only capable moving towards the inferno like a meteor moves towards a planet.

A scream rang through the temple, though neither Romeo or Pyris paid attention to it. "No, no, _no, NO NO_ _ **NO NO NO!"**_ cried the female voice, her burning red eyes widening at the sight in front of her, black and red magic leaking out of both of them.

She tried to stop him.

She failed.

And then the world was swallowed by flame.


	2. Beginning of the Healing Process

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pyris has some enemies

"-sca! Hey, Bisca! He's waking up!"

Romeo opened his eyes slowly. The light in the room burned his retinas, causing him to shield them with his arm. "Guys?" he groaned, incredibly confused about where he was.

"Romeo! You're awake!" Bisca cheered. She raced over to him, lifted him out of the bed he'd been sleeping in and pulled him close to her chest. The hug felt more like a death grip, and the boy was wondering how much longer it could go for before he ended up broken in two.

Thankfully it didn't last _too_ long. Though, after seeing the look on Bisca's face after she'd set him down, he quickly realized that being broken in half might've been _merciful_ compared to the punishment he was about to receive.

"Don't you _ever_ do anything like that again!" the green-haired woman shouted. Her eyes were furious, but what made Romeo feel even worse were the tears that were spilling out of them.

"I, uh, don't... don't plan on it." The boy was getting his bearings back. He was in a hospital room and judging how Alzack and Bisca reacted to him waking up, he assumed he had been comatose for some time. "How long was I out for?"

"Three days," Alzack answered, equal parts concerned, happy, and upset.

Any remaining disorientation Romeo may have had disappeared in an instant. "Three days?!"

"Yes, three days!" Bisca answered, "Do you realize just how worried we were about you?! When Alzack woke up, you weren't there, the temple door was open, and something inside the temple _EXPLODED!"_ She paced around the room, moving her hands as she listed off the events from three days prior.

"Exploded…?"

"Yes, exploded!" Bisca continued, "A big explosion from inside the temple where you were!"

"You're incredibly lucky you weren't hurt," the male gunslinger commented, his eyes stern, "What were you thinking?"

Romeo was back to being confused. "But I didn't cause any explosions! All that happened was—" His mouth locked itself up, and his head throbbed in pain. He rested his head in his hands to try and alleviate some of that pain, but it was a futile effort.

Bisca and Alzack were probably saying something to him, but the ringing in his ears drowned them out. There was something… _wrong_ … here. Once Romeo's head pain subsided, he realized what it was.

"Did you guys see anyone else in there with me?"

The two gun mages glanced at each other, then looked back at the boy. "Someone else?" asked Bisca.

"Yeah, a… a woman, with heterochromia?" Romeo described.

The two gun mages glanced at each other, but said nothing, until finally;

"Romeo, there was no one else there with you," Alzack said somberly, "You… You're probably still a bit delirious. Doctor's said you had a pretty bad concussion." His voice held genuine concern, but there was something else in it too. Like he wasn't telling the whole story.

But the boy didn't catch that. "What?" Romeo asked, "Then did I just… imagine all the rest of that too?" He looked down at his hands. All the injuries he'd gotten that night were gone like they were never even there in the first place.

"Imagine what?"

The boy threw his head up. "The-!" Romeo's head throbbed again as a familiar voice spoke from within his mind;

" _ **Don't say a word."**_

"What the-?" Romeo looked around the room, trying to find where the voice was coming from.

Concern crossed the female gun mages face. "Romeo, what's wrong?"

" _ **Talk to me with your thoughts,"**_ it spoke again.

' _Pyris? Is that you?'_ Romeo asked hopefully.

" _ **It is, and you didn't imagine anything,"**_ answered the Phoenix

Romeo grinned and chuckled. He didn't imagine anything! Pyris really was going to teach him magic!

" _ **Yes, I am. Now listen closely, because there are a few important things you should-"**_

"Ah, I see the boy's awake."

Everyone turned around to see an elderly man had entered the room without their notice. He was quite tall, easily breaking six and a half feet. He had light skin and dark red eyes, which had the occasional wrinkle around them. Part of his long, white hair was tied into a bun that was held together by two red chopsticks, and the rest freely flowed down a little past his shoulders. A long, white beard ran down from his face to about the middle of his chest. For clothes, he wore a base red coat with a dark red trim over a black shirt. Loose, dark red pants adorned his legs, and for footwear, he had a pair of dark red sandals.

"Yes, Izanagi-san. Again, we're so sorry for his actions." Bisca glared at Romeo. "Romeo, say you're sorry."

The elderly man chuckled. "Oh, don't worry about that too much. That temple was an old wreck anyway." He walked closer to Romeo, then turned back to face the Connells. "And please, call me Hisao."

Bisca's mouth hung agape. She figured he'd at least be _a little_ mad they'd destroyed the millennia-old temple that they'd been hired to protect."O-oh. Of course, Hisao."

"Thank you." The old man smiled. "I would- _aargghh!"_ Hisao fell to the floor, his body collapsing on itself. He coughed into his hand, and blood gushed from out of his fingers.

"Hisao!" Alzack and Bisca called. Romeo and them rushed to the elder's side to help him, but he waved them away.

"I'm fine," he said as he stood back up, any signs of illness fading away. "Just growing a bit weak in my old age, is all. But please, do not try to help me."

"Are you sure?" Romeo asked.

"Yes, though thank you for trying." He ruffled the boy's hair. Turning to Alzack and Bisca, he said, "As I was saying, I would like to speak to Romeo in private, if I could?"

"Of course," Alzack nodded. With his wife following, he walked out of the room.

' _Way to leave me alone with a strange old man,'_ Romeo thought as he watched the door close, ' _I'm sure nothing bad will come of this.'_

Pyris let out a breath. " _ **It may be worse than you think."**_

* * *

Once the Connells were out of the room, they closed the door behind them and walked away until they were sure Romeo couldn't hear them.

Alzack grabbed his wife's shoulders, speaking in a panicked whisper. "Bisca, there was a _corpse_ in the temple!"

"Maybe it was a corpse that was just there?" Bisca reasoned, "It's an old temple. Maybe someone got stuck in there for a while?" She shrugged.

But Alzack didn't relent. "Bisca, he said there was someone else with him. There was _no one_ else with him! Only a _burnt_ corpse!"

"Okay," she avoided looking at her husband, "Well, does he need to know it was there?"

"I…" Alzack tilted his head down. "I suppose not…"

* * *

Meanwhile, back with Romeo and Hisao, the air had grown thick with tension. Hisao appeared outwardly calm, but the hostile aura the older man emitted completely overshadowed that appearance. Likewise, Romeo could sense an ungodly amount of anger coming where he heard Pyris speaking.

Overall, the boy was very uncomfortable with the whole situation. It was clear that the pair had some form of unresolved business with each other. Romeo simply hoped he wouldn't be caught in the crossfire.

Pyris was the first to speak, and Romeo was thankful Hisao couldn't hear him.

" _ **Romeo, do not trust this man."**_

' _Why?'_

" _ **He is the one who imprisoned me within that temple,"**_ the Phoenix answered solemnly, " _ **If he finds out I am within you, he will take me from you, and I won't be able to teach you my magic."**_

' _What!?'_ Romeo's eyes widened. ' _Wait, you're inside me?'_ The fire mage felt a sense of discomfort at this statement. He didn't remember giving Pyris access to his body.

"There's something I'd like to ask you."

"Huh?!" the young boy shrieked, now focusing on the old man he apparently shouldn't be trusting.

"The Connells told me they found you in the center of the temple, but they didn't find much else." A calm smile continued to grace Hisao's face as he approached the younger mage. "Tell me, did _you_ see anything while you were there?"?"

"Uh, no-not-not really," Romeo stuttered out.

Hisao's face drooped. He stepped away from the boy, keeping his back towards him. "Really? Not even, say-" He spun back around, staring down Romeo in the same way a dramatic lawyer would stare down the defendant in one of those dramatic lawyer shows. "-a glowing blue crystal egg?!"

Romeo gave a nervous chuckle. "Nope! Didn't see anything like that." He grinned, praying to whatever god that would listen that Hisao believed him.

The mayor frowned. He narrowed his eyes, examining the boy. "Hmmmmm…" he groaned, "Very well."

Romeo sighed in relief. "Is that all you have to ask?"

"Not quite." His stern voice caused Romeo's face to fall. "You told the Connells you saw a woman with heterochromia. Do you know what happened to her?"

The fire mage shook his head and shrugged. For the first time in this conversation, he told the truth. "No, I don't."

Hisao narrowed his eyes at the boy, as though he were trying to peer into the child's mind. "Okay then," he sighed, loosening his expression, "I'm sorry for interrogating you like this. It's just that there's something in that temple." His face turned dark. "Something that must never, _ever,_ be allowed to leave. So hearing that it's no longer there is rather… troubling."

"Granddad! Granddad!" a girl's voice called. Romeo saw something purple fly past the room through the door's window.

The old gave a somber laugh. "My granddaughter." He looked to the door. "She must've gotten out of school early. Someone probably told her I was here."

Walking over to the door and opening it, he said, "The hospital said you were clear to leave once you woke up, so you should go join the Connells once you feel up to it."

Romeo nodded. "O-okay." He lifted himself out of the hospital bed and walked over to Hisao, who was holding the door for him.

When he was at the door, he asked, "Why can't that thing leave the temple?"

"That is…" Hisao turned away, his face once again turning dark. "...Something a child should not concern himself over."

Romeo didn't respond, and merely contemplated Hisao's words. The boy didn't understand what had happened between Hisao and Pyris, nor why the old man would seal the Phoenix away. He wondered who the one he should really trust was.

Alzack's and Bisca's voices broke his train of thought. He saw the two of them waving at him, signaling for him to go to them. He took one last look at Hisao's somber face, then ran over to his friend. Together, they left the hospital.

Hisao kept his eyes on Romeo as he left. His granddaughter had already found him and latched herself around his waist. He looked down at her smiling face and placed a hand on her purple hair. "I certainly hope you weren't lying to me just now, Romeo," he whispered to himself.

"For all our sakes."

* * *

Meanwhile, back with Romeo and the Connells, they were planning on getting the next train out of the city. After all of the day's excitement, they were ready to head back home and rest. Thankfully they weren't going home empty-handedHisao had been generous enough to pay them for their time, though a lot of it had gone into Romeo's hospital bill.

But Romeo didn't care much about the money—not that he was going to see it anyway. He'd gotten something much better. He found a teacher who'll give him an unbelievable power, with which he can save Fairy Tail!

Speaking of…

_So, you wanna tell me what all that was about?'_ The boy asked, sparing a glance at the hospital.

A sigh echoed in the boy's head. " _ **Hisao was an… old acquaintance,"**_ the Phoenix explained, " _ **But one day he betrayed me, and locked me away in that temple."**_

' _Oh…'_ Romeo looked down at the ground. ' _I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-'_

" _ **It's quite alright,"**_ Pyris assured, " _ **Though I would prefer it if we didn't talk about it."**_

Romeo nodded, though since no one else knew he was talking to someone, it just looked like his neck twitched. ' _Of course.'_

Silence followed, but only for a moment. There were still a few more things on Romeo's mind.

' _Hey Pyris, what did you mean when you said you were "inside me'?'"_ he asked the Phoenix.

" _ **First off, 'inside' technically isn't the correct word,"**_ Pyris corrected. " _ **It implies that I'm inhabiting a physical space, when in reality that simply isn't true. Rather, I've given up my physical body in order to bind my soul to yours."**_

' _You gave up your body?!'_ Romeo screamed in his head, stopping in his tracks. Alzack and Bisca asked if anything was wrong, and after reassuring them and telling them he was fine, they all continued to the train station.

Pyris groaned at his disciple's display. " _ **Yes, though it is not as serious as you may think. Bodies for Phoenixes are like clothing to humans. When the time comes that I'll have to separate from you, I'll simply get a new one."**_

' _Oh, okay,'_ Romeo thought, ' _And, uh, what happened to that woman? The one in the temple?'_

Once again, silence followed, though this one felt much heavier than the last. It was only once the group arrived at the train station that Pyris answered him.

" _ **That is something you are… better off not thinking about, for now, anyway."**_

* * *

**In the Temple**

A body, charred and mangled, laid restlessly on the stone floor.

Her fingers twitched, then her hand, then her whole arm as she fought herself for control of the limb. As she moved, bits and pieces of burnt flesh fell from her body in the form of ash, slowly being replaced by brand new flesh.

She used the barely healed limb to prop herself up just enough for her to sit against the nearby wall. Looking to her legs, she saw more red flesh growing there. It seemed that her whole body had been caught in the blast.

A shame, really, since she rather liked that body.

The fact she could see meant she already had her eyes back. Though she didn't have a mirror, she knew her eyes were silver and gold. But the gold one rarely ever functioned properly, and the silver one functioned a bit _too_ well.

She knew if she did have a mirror, she'd be seeing herself in a sorry state. If her limbs were any indication, then it would be a while before she was fully restored. She probably won't even get her skin back for another couple hours.

But she supposed that was fine. There was no need to rush, for she had all the time in the world.

A sinister grin spread across newly formed lips, for the same could not be said for Pyris.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was betaed by FanFiction user Iket 45, so big thanks to him.
> 
> Be sure to leave kudos and a comment down below. Comments help me understand what I do right and wrong, which helps improve my writing.


	3. Forest for the Trees

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Not quite a training montage

**4 Years Later; x790;**

The teenage boy sprinted through the forest, leaping over every boulder and fallen tree in his way in order to evade his pursuer. But he knew he couldn't run for long. Soon enough he'd be caught, and then he was in for hell.

His bare feet _slap_ ped against the dirt at a breakneck pace, staining baggy azure pants that were tied closes around his ankles. He breathed heavily through a dark blue cloth half-mask, which covered his neck all the way down to his sleeveless, black skin-tight shirt which outlined his abs. Dragging behind him was a white trimmed azure gi that he'd tied around his waist, and his signature orange scarf.

His charcoal eyes saw that he was approaching a much denser part of the forest. He glanced backward; no sign of his pursuer, but that didn't mean they weren't close. He threw his hands, clothed in elbow-length gloves that covered his middle fingers, behind him. A blue aura formed around his body and his spiky dark purple hair began to produce little azure sparks.

His speed increases dramatically. The world around him started to turn into a blur of greens and browns, but it just as quickly came back into focus. With a burst of blue flame from his feet, he jumped up into the tree branches. Graceful as a dancer, he leaped from branch to branch, trying to create as much distance between himself and his hunter as possible.

* * *

" _ **Your bones have lost density, meaning that you will be much more agile than the average human,"**_ _the dark blue bird explained,_ " _ **Paired with your enhanced eyesight, you'll be able to perform acrobatic feats no ordinary human is capable of."**_

* * *

_CRACK!_

The sound of trees falling in the distance caught his attention. Taking another glance backward, he saw a total of five azure missiles chasing after him. The first four he dodged with relative ease, but the fifth managed to hit his side, burning away the thin cloth that covered it.

But the boy hardly even noticed. Blue flames appeared around the rip, covering it before fading away, revealing the garment to be good as new.

* * *

" _ **This shall be the outfit you train in,"**_ _the phoenix stated, gesturing to a pile of torn-up blue clothes._

" _This?" the child asked in disbelief._

 _The bird nodded._ " _ **I understand that it may not look like much, but trust me when I say that it is the best armor a Phoenix Slayer could wear. Please, try to pour some of your Phoenix Slayer Magic into it."**_

_The child sighed. "Alright." With a reluctant hand, he summoned what little Phoenix magic he could and poured it into the clothes._

_Light spread through the ripped clothes. They melded and shifted, transforming into serpents of flame that wrapped themselves around the child. He was too stunned to move, but when he could, he saw that he was wrapped in an entirely new outfit._

" _ **This garment bonds itself to its wearer's soul and conforms itself to their will. It also possesses self-repair features, so there is no need to worry about it being damaged during a fight."**_

* * *

The boy knew he would reach a clearing very soon. Grinning beneath his mask, he increased his speed once again, no longer needing branches as he could just bounce his feet off the sides of the trees' trunks. Like a blue comet, he flew through the forest sky.

His final jump sent him high over the clearing. Twisting in mid-air, he summoned his weapon: a golden bow, shaped like a pair of eagle wings. He pulled the bowstring back, and three arrows like bird beaks took form. Indigo lit up the tips of his arrows, A hidden smirk crossed his face as he released them.

* * *

" _ **Like your new clothing, your weapon will also bind itself to you, and take the form you desire it to."**_ _The Phoenix pointed his wing at a beat-up katana._

_The child didn't hesitate this time. He poured his magic into the blade and watched in awe as it transformed into a bow._

" _ **An archer, hm? Perhaps that's good. Phoenix Slayers lack long-range capabilities, so maybe becoming an archer wouldn't be such a bad idea. And with your newly enhanced eyesight**_ _ **and**_ _**colored flames, who knows what you could be capable of with that."**_

* * *

_BOOM!_

Indigo erupted through the treetops, incinerating the forest tops and bringing down several of the mighty oaks that once stood proud. The boy felt guilty about desecrating what was once his favorite place to play, but if it meant losing the one chasing after him, he'd burn the whole forest.

However, it seemed as though his arrows did nothing but slow his pursuer down. He floated down to the ground and dispersed his weapon. He should've known running would be futile. Bare feet back on the grass, he reluctantly decided to stand his ground.

His follower burst forth from the forest, bringing down several trees in his path. Locking eyes with the boy, he dived right at him.

The boy fell to the ground, just barely dodging in time. His opponent flew right over his head, but he glanced back just in time to see him make his return. The mask around his face vanished as he sprung back up and screamed, " _ **Fire Phoenix's Screech!"**_

A beam of condensed blue flames shot at his opponent, who simply glided to the right. Grunting, the boy lit his foot up in azure flame, following up his last attack with a " _ **Fire Phoenix's Talons!"**_

His swift kick cuts through the air and his opponent's cheek. His adversary crashes onto the ground, forming a dent within the soft earth.

However, the beast picks himself up with ease. The flap of its mighty azure wings blows away all nearby foliage. His avian body, seemingly composed entirely of blue flames, radiates a heat that could rival the sun. Slitted eyes look down upon the boy from past his razor-sharp beak, equally razor-sharp talons primed to tear him limb from limb.

He inhales sharply, then blasts the boy with a similar jet of blue flames. But unlike Romeo's _**Screech**_ , this one hits its mark, sending the boy flying into a nearby tree.

Blue flames light up around the boy's clothes and wounds. Like it does to the cloth around his body, the blue flames mend the child's seared flesh, restoring it to its original tan color. His head injury, received upon impact with the tree, seals up. The only evidence that he was ever injured was the few drops of red scattered across the boy's skin.

* * *

" _ **Finally, the Phoenix's most useful survival mechanism: our healing. With your newfound healing factor, you'll be able to restore entire limbs in mere moments!"**_ _the Phoenix screeched, but then turned serious._

" _ **But be careful. Though you can heal yourself significantly better than the average human, that doesn't mean you can't be fatally wounded. You are still very much mortal."**_

* * *

And Romeo was starting to feel that mortality right now. Staring down the massive fire beast in front of him, he knew his time was limited.

" _ **Romeo…"**_ his ancient voice spoke, and the boy gulped.

Even with miles upon miles of forest for him to escape into, Romeo found himself unable to run. Exhaustion and fear had long since turned his legs into jelly. Now he was nothing more than a sitting duck in the beast's crosshairs.

"P-please…" the boy begged, getting onto his hands and knees and groveling.

"Please! No more training today, Pyris! I'm begging you!"

Pointed eyes glared into the boy's soul. After what felt like an eternity to the child, a reluctant sigh escaped Pyris' lips. " **Very well."** He smiled.

Romeo collapsed on the ground. His body spread out across the dirt, heavily enjoying the sensation of the cool earth on his skin. "Oh thank gods!" he gasped.

The giant bird chuckled, flying above the boy and shrinking down to the size of a parrot. " **Oh come on, it wasn't that bad."**

The boy lifted his head up to glare at the phoenix. "You made me run around the perimeter of Magnolia Forest! _Fifty times!_ "

" **You survived, didn't you?"** Pyris laughed, " **Besides, with the exception of this little skirmish, you did quite well."**

Romeo groaned. "Yeah, well you try fighting after dealing with all that bullshit."

" **I never said that this would be easy for you, did I?"**

"No…" Romeo let out an exasperated sigh.

" **Exactly."** The phoenix nodded. " **You knew from the start that learning my magic wouldn't be easy. You're the one who chose this path."**

Romeo frowned. "Yeah, yeah." His back thumped against the tree he crashed into. He balled his hands into fists, and his hair cast shadows over his eyes.

" **Hm?"** the phoenix questioned, " **What's wrong?"**

"Nothing…" the boy sighed, "It's just… I have this magic, but I can't actually _use_ it!" He threw his hands in the air. "I have to keep it a secret from everybody. Even my family, the people I wanted to learn this magic _for_."

" **I understand that it may seem pointless,"** Pyris admitted, " **But trust me when I say that there will come a time when you'll be able to use that magic as you please. I simply wish for you to be prepared for anyone who may hunt you down for using it."**

Romeo raised an eyebrow. "What? Like the people who locked you away?"

Pyris nodded. " **You never know who you can trust in this world, so it's best to be prepared for the worst."**

"Yeah, alright," Romeo groaned as he began his long trudge back to Magnolia with Pyris flying behind him. Along the way, he grabbed a drink from within a running stream. For as well as his healing could take care of his injuries, it did little to nothing for his exhaustion. He had to take a break several times when walking back simply because he was too tired to keep going.

Roughly an hour later, the boy and the bird made it to the edge of the forest. Romeo was relieved to finally get back home and rest, but Pyris wasn't as excited as he was. The phoenix visibly tensed, and Romeo, being linked with him, sensed it. Pyris quickly flew at the boy, phasing and seemingly disappearing into his body.

"What's up?" the boy asked.

" _ **There's someone standing just outside this forest"**_ Pyris answered from within the teenager's mind, " _ **I'm unsure who, but it's possible that they've been spying on us this whole time. Stay on your guard."**_

Heeding Pyris' warning, Romeo carefully inched towards the forest's exit. He caught the silhouette of someone leaning up against a tree, outlined by the light of the setting sun. The figure was hard to make out at first, but as he moved closer, he realized _exactly_ who he was looking at.

He wasn't sure if he should've been surprised or furious about it.

Leaning against the tree, clad in her usual long sleeved yellow top, jean shorts, thigh high black stockings, sneakers, and the large green beanie she used to cover her short, ash brown hair was his old best friend. She must've heard him approach because her golden eyes were locked right onto him.

The two said nothing for a while. An awkward silence permeated the air, broken only by the faint rustle of leaves and the slight pitter-patter of forest creatures running across the ground. They were as still as statues, unable to move for fear of making the wrong one. Until finally, Romeo spoke;

"Lindsey?"

The girl looked like she was gasping for air. What she wanted to say was right on the tip of her tongue, it just wouldn't make that final leap into being spoken words. So instead she groaned, clenching her fists and aggressively turning away from him. "Yeah, yeah, big surprise!" she said through clenched teeth.

"I mean, considering how you haven't spoken to me in four years…" Romeo drawled, putting his hands in his pockets, "Yeah, kinda is."

"Well…" She frowned before grimacing. "Well, it's not _my_ fault you won't let go of your failure of a guild!" She turned back to glare at him.

A tic mark appeared on Romeo's forehead. "Oh, _really?!"_ He glared back. "Wow! You're right! Twilight Ogre is just _soooo_ much better," he yelled, sarcasm dripping from his voice, "Who wouldn't want to be in a guild full of _extortionists?!"_

Lindsey gasped. "They're not- They-" She gripped her bangs, groaning to herself before exploding at the boy. " _We're_ the ones helping your guild stay afloat!"

"Wow, you joined Lamia Scale?" Romeo asked, "Gee, when did this happen?" He batted his eyes.

Lindsey growled. Face red, her body was visibly shaking. She let out a sigh like it was a breath of fire. "You're still just as annoying as ever," she said, as she started to walk away.

"This was a mistake," she whispered.

"What was a mistake?"

Lindsey turned her head back to see a genuinely curious boy. "Nothing, I…" She fidgeted with her arms a little and only then did Romeo notice the slight bruising hidden beneath her sleeves. "I gotta go." And she took off.

"Lindsey, wait!" Romeo called after her, but she was already gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here we go, a nice little training/battle thing to outline some of Romeo's skills, powers, and tools. He does obviously have more spells and tricks under his sleeves, but I think those will be better saved for something I have planned in the future.
> 
> Thank you all for reading. I hope you enjoyed it. Please be sure to leave kudos and some comments!


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